'Build The Wall' Chants Cause Controversy At Jefferson Vs. Dover Basketball Game

JEFFERSON, NJ— A recent Jefferson Township High School vs. Dover High School basketball game has been causing controversy online, and not because of how the teams played: racially charged messages were allegedly chanted by the Jefferson fan section against the Dover players, eyewitnesses and officials confirm.

Public backlash against the Jefferson chants and the online posts from the Dover community that followed grew so great that superintendents from Jefferson and Dover school districts published statements confirming the incident on their websites.

According to attendees at the Jan. 28 game, students in the home fan section at Jefferson turned their backs on players from Dover, and chanted racially charged messages, including "build the wall," and "ashy knees." The Dover High School student body is 80 percent Hispanic and African-American.

In a now-deleted tweet, @JTHSFalcons called for the Jefferson students to wear American themed apparel for a themed fan section, a common practice in high school sports. Most Jefferson students pictured appeared to be wearing American flag print t-shirts or shorts, but some could be seen wearing Make America Great Again red hats or t-shirts.

After the game, a parent of a Dover player voiced her concern over the Jefferson fan section:

The Superintendents Respond

By Monday afternoon, superintendents from both districts issued statements addressing the controversy.

"By means of example, when one of our African American students attempted to make foul shots, a small group of the home team fans chanted 'ashy knees.' When the Dover students were warming up, chants of 'Build the Wall' resounded from another small, yet vocal group of fans. A variety of racial slurs were also expressed during the game," Bob Becker, the Dover School District Superintendent said in a letter on the district website.

Becker also said that painting the "Jefferson fans with a broad brush would be just as disingenuous as the treatment our students received by the small group who were so inappropriate."

"Unfortunately, the actions of a few have now tarnished the reputation of an outstanding student body, school, and community and for that, I am very sorry," Patrick Tierney, the Jefferson Township School District, wrote. "Jefferson Township High School has over 1,000 students and to admonish all of them, for the actions of one or a group, is unfortunate."

"By no means am I accepting or defending their behavior, but it is our responsibility as adults to work together with our children so that they can learn from their mistakes. It is very upsetting when adults openly criticize a child; as adults, we should be modeling appropriate behavior," Tierney said, apparently alluding to comments on the Facebook post. You can read the full text of Tierney's letter here.

Later in his letter, the Jefferson superintendent also urged caution online on the student's parts, writing, "In closing, I implore you to be your child’s role model in cautioning them to always reflect prior to writing an email and or posting on social media."

Similarly Becker's letter ends by speaking out against the online arguments. "Do not regress to the lowest common denominator by posting negative comments on Social Media. Stand tall, be proud, and let us use the systems in place to seek systemic answers to our concerns. You are better than this, we are better than this. Civility and grace in the face of disparaging behavior is a strength, not a weakness," Becker said. You can read the full text of Becker's letter here.

The two superintendents stressed that the alleged incident was being taken seriously by both schools. Both New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) and the Morris County Secondary Schools Athletic Directors Association (MCSSADA) have been made aware of the chants, and a Harassment, Intimidation, and Bullying (HIB) report was filed by Jefferson Township Public Schools.

"I have the greatest respect for Mr. Patrick Tierney, Superintendent of Jefferson, and the professional and compassionate manner in which he and his staff are handling the issue at hand," Becker said in an email to Patch Tuesday morning. "I cannot emphasize enough that the concern is based on the behaviors of a handful of fans, and that it is not only inappropriate but wrong to assume the behavior of a few represents any one district. The problems have been identified, and appropriate action is being taken."

Tierney did not respond to Patch's requests for comment.

Controversy On Facebook

Comments on the post describing the game were split: many were from the Dover community, denouncing the chants as racist, but many were from Jefferson students, defending the fan section as patriotic and that the chants were not racist.

"I'm a student at JTHS and we were not attempting to be racist in anyway. No matter who we played, we were dressing in American attire. We turn our backs against every team. If you've ever been to a high school game, almost every fan section turns their backs while the other team is announced," a Jefferson student commented. "As a fan section, we did nothing wrong. It's a high school sporting event, not a racist rally. Have a great day and let's make America great again!"

"I am also a student at JTHS and we live in America it's our right to support our country by wearing American flag shirts and trump shirts if the red white and blue makes you sick to your stomach pack your bags and leave then because we don't want you here," a second student commented.

Not all Jefferson students defended the alleged actions.

"I am also a student at JTHS. My school is the reason why I don't go to basketball games. I am truly sorry your team had to deal with our school's ignorance. A basketball game is no place for politics and racist remarks," one Jefferson student commented. "In fact there's no place in general for racist remarks. I may not have been at the game so I wouldn't definitely know that these comments were made by my school but from what I witness and hear at my school in general your accusations sound about right."

Many of the commenters identifying themselves as Dover parents called for the incident to be reported to the schools and media outlets, but others commenters who said they were parents from Dover had an angrier tone.

Some comments responding to Jefferson students called them "white trash" and said they should "go in a corner and kill yourself."

Neither the original poster or commenters responded to Patch's messages.

Jefferson won the game, 69-41. It was the preliminary round of the Morris County Tournament.

Image via Morguefile